By Samindra Kunti
December 7 – Belgian football has banned away fans until the end of the year following a weekend of disorder across grounds, with incidents at Standard Liege and in the Antwerp derby.
“Until the end of this calendar year, no more visiting supporters are allowed in all Pro League matches,” said the Pro League, the ruling body for Belgium’s professional football, in a statement. “This measure will install a cooling-off period around our matches and, by temporarily suspending bus travel by visiting fans, will also have an impact on the virus circulation that we can limit.”
At the weekend, a Beerschot fan ran across the field to throw a flare into the Antwerp section. The supporter will face criminal charges. The Walloon derby between Standard and Liege had to be stopped in the 88th minute when fans, furious at how the Standard hierarchy has run the club, began throwing flares on to the pitch.
The Pro League described the events as “unacceptable and even criminal”.
“The scenes from both the Antwerp derby and the Walloon classic are a real disgrace,” said Pro League CEO Pierre François. “We apologise for the scenes that took place. We sit down with the clubs and call on them to take action against these people as soon as possible.”
The incidents come at a sensitive time. Belgium is enduring a fourth wave of the coronavirus, averaging more than 17,000 cases a day, leading the government to reintroduce restrictions and limiting crowd sizes. Professional football, however, has been spared, but this weekend’s scenes won’t have done much good to the game’s already shaky reputation.
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